1. Field of the Invention
Provided are improved cancer diagnostic methods, along with compositions and apparatus useful in conducting those methods.
2. Description of the Related Art
Early detection of cancer typically leads to increased survival rates. Metastatic lesions commonly are detected by histological techniques, including immunohistochemical techniques. Metastasized cells typically infiltrate the lymph nodes, and, thus in most instances, certain sentinel lymph nodes, lymph nodes where metastasized cells typically first infiltrate, are recognized for each cancer type and are analyzed for the presence of lesions, including micrometastases. Trained histologists often can detect metastatic lesions visually after tissue from a sentinel lymph node is sectioned and stained. Highly trained histologists often can visualize micrometasteses, but the ability to visualize such lesions varies from histologist-to-histologist.
In many surgical procedures to remove tumors, biopsies of sentinel lymph nodes are taken. The surgical procedure is then halted and the excised lymphatic tissue is then analyzed. Once it is determined that the tumor has metastasized, a second, more radical surgical procedure is performed, removing regional lymphatics. A rapid method for identifying tumors is therefore warranted, not only because more assays can be performed in a given time period, thereby increasing laboratory turnaround, but permitting accurate, intraoperative decisions to be made, rather than conducting a second surgical procedure. It is therefore desirable to identify useful diagnostics for malignancies, especially that permit rapid and/or intraoperative detection of lymphatic micrometastases.